An unfamiliar subject to the contemporary connecting options for cranes on pontoons is removability; Various difficulties and obstructions related to the heavy-duty nature of the equipment lead to a limited amount of practiced conventional connecting options for this purpose, which all have the absence of removability in common. Furthermore, the consideration of various types of efficiencies and performance aspects has not been common practice within this field. The aim of developing a removable and efficient crane-to-pontoon connection system is therefore set.
An initial literature research is performed in order to obtain a variety of connecting options which have the potential of forming the basis of a new removable connection system, optimized for crane-to-pontoon configurations. Subsequently, creating a unique rating system, specifically for crane-to-pontoon connection systems, led to a substantiated selection process for the most feasible option among the potential connecting options. The turnbuckle option obtained the highest ranking and was therefore selected to proceed the design process with.
Developing the turnbuckle option into a complete connection system and accomplishing all defined aims led to an encounter with various engineering challenges. An integral design process led to the discovery of a proficient combination of components, which overcome the challenges and provide satisfaction with respect to the aims of the project.
The parameters of the developed conceptual design are finally quantified in order to prove feasibility and efficiency. Applicable design parameters are found which pass the safety requirements, while minimizing the material consumption. With these parameters, the removable design is compared to conventional real case connection systems in terms of cost-efficiency, which resulted in the observation that multiple millions of euros in long-term savings are anticipated per deployed crane due to the removability feature.